Sofia counted the seconds, alone with nothing but her own thoughts to keep her company. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, new system windows appeared again.
[I’m almost done, we will be free in a moment.]
Great. Thanks. Are you going to start to explain?
[I would not know where to start. I thought we had more time, I miscalculated, sorry.]
No point apologizing, let’s focus on getting through this, I just need information.
[Sadly, despite utilizing all the holes our enemies left in the system’s protection, I still cannot upload data directly to you. I will compile a few answers to your most pressing questions for now.]
And to think we were moved to the Draconic system to be safer…
[Sen likely did not know that even the Draconic section was compromised. But he could be one of our enemies, still.]
Really, Sen? That feels wrong.
[It’s hard to judge. As it is we cannot trust anyone within the system’s staff.]
Do you think Everelle was in on this whole thing? Since this happened during our duel?
[Unlikely, but perhaps. I have compiled a few lists, get through them quickly, we’re going to be free any second now, and I have no idea what’s waiting for us ‘outside’.]
Understood.
A few new system windows using the condensed quest formatting appeared, without her skills for fast reading, Sofia went through them one by one.
[Quest: Who is ‘Mr Scribe’?
Requirements:
* Scribes are created at birth by extending your brain and soul within the mana plane.
* A majority of the time, we do not think in understandable thoughts and speech.
* There are many restrictions on a Scribe’s behavior, am I currently using the ennemie’s attack on the system to our advantage to bypass this.]
[Quest: Who are we up against?
Requirements:
* Among our enemies are Tier 4 scribes, the remnant scribes of dead high-level people who have been assimilated within the system workforce.
* They have joined hand with Scripture and possibly other Gods.
* There is at least one Archangel within their ranks. Possibly more.
* I do not know the Identity of the voice and I do not know what they want to accomplish.]
[Quest: What now?
Requirements:
* As soon as possible, use the Key to hide from the system.
* We will cheat our own way through the filter, but that means we are still under the no-healing restriction. Just follow my instructions later.
* To begin with, I need the upgrade to tier 3, this should still be obtainable.
* Although I am able to communicate right now, this will not last, and it impedes my ability to help with your spells. We must make the most of it while we can.]
Sofia felt that she had learned a lot from these few lines but she still had many questions. The most pressing one she just blurted out.
What about the others? Are they fine?
[Everyone sharing the Lord’s mark I can tell is still alive. I am blind beyone that.]
There was a certain relief in that, her heroes could all be brought back but this meant Saria was also safe.
Wait, what about Cinthia and Astelia? And Michael? They were also in the trial!
[I cannot tell, but I suspect that Asty will be fine as she has a mark of her own. The others are uncertain. The effects of this might extend beyond the trial as well.]
That’s bad… Hopefully the ‘old ones’ will react…
Sofia felt tense as the Scribe had promised they would be freed anytime now, she tried to lighten the atmosphere a bit.
This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author's work.
Ah, and shouldn’t you be Mrs Scribe, then? Actually, do you not have or want a name?
[Don’t be ridiculous. You stay Sofia and I stay Mr Scribe. Exploring this too much is dangerous. We may share half a brain but I do not wish ‘Us’ to become ‘I’.]
I- That… Yeah… I’m going to need a while to process all of this…
[I’ll be right there to support you, always.]
Thank you…
As she finished her conversation with the Scribe, Sofia started to hear something, a low whistle, like the rumbling of a distant wind on the sea. The nothingness around her opened up, and slowly she became able to see. Her surroundings were blurry and vaporous, all in a sickly pale shade of purplish blue. From what she could tell, she was against the back wall of a small square room, some kind of basement with stairs leading up. She could still not see, feel, or move her body. But she found she could speak.
“What is this? Are we…?”
[Yes. This is the Gods’ realm.]
“What should I do? I can’t feel or move anything. It’s like all I can do is watch and see.”
She could not even move her eyes, her vision was limited to that one viewing angle, straight ahead. With the stairs taunting her from just a few meters away. She felt she could now clearly hear the sound of the sea.
[This is new for me too, but I have been preparing us for this. Try to find the Sun and scripture essences within you. They have both left this plane so it should be safe.]
“What about the others essences?”
[Too much uncertainty.]
The Scribe guided Sofia on trying to find the essences. Following the instructions, Sofia tried to find the essences, and it came strangely naturally. The strange basement became progressively brighter, lit by the warm rays of the sun. The sickly blue color persisted everywhere, but the basement itself became less blurry, losing its dream-like mirage façade, and gaining the tangibility of a real physical place. Scripture’s essence was also brought up, shining so weakly that its exact colour was hard to make out.
[Good. Now focus on your hands. Try to bring raise them before your eyes.]
The hands that Sofia finally managed to raise were made entirely of radiant yellow light. Starting from there, she slowly materialised her entire body within the Gods’ realm, a body made entirely of light. The light of her veins and nerves. The light of the [Venerable physique of the primeval void]. She could finally feel herself exist, and properly look around. The first thing she examined was herself. The essences were distributed around her body exactly how she had arranged them back on Veliadren’s moon before sharing a meal with Erredis. Although she had only purposely brought up the Sun and scripture ones, two red lights still shone amidst the other, although only partially. Despite being visible, they did not cast any light of their surroundings.
Ormoncleth’s and Aphenoreth’s.
“Since when have you-”
The scribe did not even need to hear the full question before he answered.
[When Sorrow first used our ennemies’ pathways to grant her skill upon us.]
So VPPV was always in your plans? What if I had used any other keyword combination?!
[Again, we share half a brain. I am not always right in my predictions on your choices, but this outcome was likely, if not, I would have found another way.]
What about the graveyard, did you intend for it to be used like I do?
[Not at all. This design, like many, was mostly created by the High Scribes.]
Alright, sorry for all the questions, let’s get out of here, I think I should be able to move now.
Step by step, Sofia moved to reach the stairs, her movements were slow and weighty. Moving in this realm felt like moving underwater. Illusory chains appeared when she distanced herself from the wall, restraining her and pulling her back, they were stronger than her. She pulled against them, resisting with all her might and looking at the empty Scribe’s window for help. A flash of red light illuminated the room and the chains shattered like broken glass.
Freedom. Thank you Lords.
Climbing the steps one by one, Sofia left the basement. The stairs led to a small abandoned stone hut in slight disrepair. There were wooden buckets, nets and fishing rods, though everything felt uncanny as it was all reflecting the same shade of purplish blue.
“A fisherman’s hut? I should go outside, but… Should we not focus on trying to leave this realm?”
[We need a God’s help. As it is, I know no other way to leave.]
Sofia looked around the hut. “Then, could this place be owned by the voice? Would that make them one of the Gods?”
[I am as lost as you are.]
Sofia sighed. “Let’s seek a God, then. There’s only fifty percent chance of them being part of the enemy, we have survived worse odds.”
[On the bright side, I believe Pareth and Bookie should be taking care of our physical body as we speak.]
“They feel closer than before. They must be worried sick. Let’s hurried up out of here.”
Grabbing the rusty handle of the decrepit wooden door, Sofia left the small fisherman hut.
Outside, everything was still in different shades of the same color. There were no sounds other than the unsettling low rumbling of the sea. Sofia was in the port of a large city. There were no people or ships, just old, decrepit houses and an empty wharf leading to the sea on one side, and winding city streets leading to a tall castle on the other. The sunlight emanating from Sofia spread far, but things in the distance were still blurry, the sky, especially, looked like a second roiling sea. The sky was what Sofia had been hearing.
“Were there civilizations in the Gods’ realm? Just where did that voice take us?”
----------------------------------------